White smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel just after 6 p.m. Vatican time (noon ET) on Thursday, May 8, signaling to the world that a new pope had been selected. The papal conclave to elect Pope Francis ...

Here are some facts about conclaves past, derived from historical studies including Miles Pattenden's “Electing the Pope in Early Modern Italy, 1450–1700,” and interviews with experts including Elena ...

A new pope has been chosen. Cardinal Robert Prevost has been named the first American pope in the history of the Catholic Church, USA TODAY reports. He will take the papal name Leo XIV. White smoke ...

There is no rule that cardinals electing a new pope vote a certain way according to their nationality or region. But understanding their makeup in geographic terms can help explain some of their ...

“Conclave” the film may have introduced moviegoers to the spectacular ritual and drama of a modern conclave, but the periodic voting to elect a new pope has been going on for centuries and created a ...

Pope Francis’s successor will be elected in the coming days in a millennium-old ceremony known as the papal conclave. During the conclave, the 135 eligible Cardinal Electors of the Catholic Church ...